Just yesterday, Toyota Motor Company's president Akio Toyoda (yep, the grandson of the company's founder) indicated that he had no intention of attending a February 24 Congressional hearing before the House Oversight Committee. Instead, Toyoda said that Yoshimi Inaba, president of Toyota's operations in North America, will appear on behalf of of the automaker.

When pressed further, though, the New York Times reports that Toyoda said he would consider attending if he received a formal invitation, none of which had been extended. Well now, that little oversight has since been corrected. Chairman Edolphus Towns (D-NY) has sent a letter – the text of which you'll find pasted after the break – formally inviting Toyoda to attend the upcoming Toyota Gas Pedals: Is the Public At Risk? hearing.

Oh, and Toyoda should also feel free to submit "written testimony for the record, of any reasonable length," and to "be prepared to provide a five minute opening statement and answer questions posed by Members of the Committee." Sounds like a nifty little shindig, we'll be waiting for our own formal invitations in the mail. We'll bring the popcorn.